Not many people knew of Axar Patel until the 2014 edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL). A left-arm spinner from Gujarat, Patel made his entry into competitive cricket in February 2012,...Full profile

Not many people knew of Axar Patel until the 2014 edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL). A left-arm spinner from Gujarat, Patel made his entry into competitive cricket in February 2012, playing a Vijay Hazare Trophy game for his state against Maharashtra in Mumbai.

He then made his Ranji Trophy debut against Madhya Pradesh in November, 2012, but that was the only game he played that season. He was given an IPL contract by Mumbai Indians for IPL-6, but did not get a game.

Patel went back to the domestic circuit and this time, Gujarat gave him a good run. He played seven matches in the 2013-14 Ranji Trophy and had a great season. Not only was he amongst the runs, he also picked up 29 wickets to become his side's third highest wicket-taker.

This impressed the Kings XI Punjab (KXIP) management, who were looking for some local talent ahead of the auctions for IPL 7. Eventually, KXIP's decision to rope him into the squad turned out to be a master-stroke as Patel went on to become one the top performers of the season.

Although he considers himself as a batting all-rounder, Patel troubled many a batsman with his accurate, wicket-to-wicket bowling and ended the tournament with 17 wickets and also scored a few handy runs with the bat. Captain George Bailey was very impressed with Patel's show as the left-armer delivered quality goods even when he was given the ball in pressure situations. He was rightly named the 'Emerging Player of the Year' for IPL-7. His heroics also earned him a place in India's squad for the tour of Bangladesh. He bowled consistently well in the ODI series against Sri Lanka at home in 2014 and even kept Ravindra Jadeja out of the side for a few games. Impressed by his show, the selectors named him in the Indian squad for the 2015 ICC World Cup.

With the Indian bowling attack well stocked, Axar didn't get an opportunity in the mega tournament, but was back in the mix when India toured Bangladesh in June. Since then, the initial understudy of Ravindra Jadeja has become a regular in India's ODI squad - especially in the 50-over game. While his batting and excellent fielding comes as a bonus, the selectors decision to view Jadeja as a majorly red-ball player, has opened up opportunities for Axar in the other formats of the game.

Axar missed out on selection for the 2017 Champions Trophy as the selectors chose the experience of Jadeja ahead of Axar. Pigeonholed as a limited-overs performer, Axar is bound to get more opportunities to prove his metal.